I’m always talking about my life in these columns because that is all I know to talk about. But there is a big part of my life that I don’t talk about much here. That is because I don’t ever want you to think I’m using this space for free advertising. But sometimes I think I bend over too far the other way and talk about everybody else’s business except my own.
I’ll admit, I really blew our horn when Cedar Lake Nursing Home celebrated its 50th anniversary. I figured every 50 years it would be okay for me to tell you what a super great place it is.
That was the chant that rained down from the stands from the time Malakoff ran through the tunnel to take the field to when the Tigers lined up in the victory formation on the last snap to run out the clock on a 23-21 win over Brock Friday at The Star in Frisco.
It is the chant that will follow the Tigers all the way to the State Championship Game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington next Thursday against Grandview.
The Tigers earned their chance at a title by playing a complete game Friday, with the offense, defense and special teams all contributing.
The Malakoff Tigers earned the school’s second Regional Football Championship with a 37-22 win over Atlanta Saturday afternoon. (Michael V. Hannigan Photo)
By Michael V. Hannigan/HCN
LONGVIEW — At this rate, someone is going to have to trademark the phrase “Malakoff Tough.”
The Malakoff Tigers fought off another schedule change, bad weather and a strong second half by Atlanta to beat the Rabbits, 37-22, and earn the school’s second Regional Championship Saturday afternoon.
“Their kids showed a lot of heart, they didn’t quit,” said Malakoff Coach Jamie Driskell. “They hit us in the mouth a little bit early in the third quarter and we made a couple of mistakes, but our kids fought back.”
“Both teams showed a lot of heart,” Driskell said, “and our kids showed a little bit of mental toughness in these conditions.”
Malakoff broke out to a 21-0 lead behind a dominating ground game and led 31-6 at the half. The Tigers never led by less than 15 throughout.
Here are my 10 Observations from a second-straight Saturday afternoon game.
— Nothing has come easy for the Tigers this year. The schedule has been made up on the fly because of bad weather and at times the roster has been the same way because of injuries. The Tigers have had multiple chances to fold and nobody would have blamed them if they did. Instead, they keep finding ways to stay together and win. One week it is pounding the ball on the ground, the next week it is big plays in the passing game, and always the defense getting a stop when it needs one. You expect incredible effort from a team when you get to this stage in the playoffs, but the mental toughness now being displayed by the Tigers was forged throughout the season and might be the most impressive thing about this run.
— Tough football equals physical football, and that’s what Malakoff played Saturday. The Tigers gained over 400 yards on the ground, according to my unofficial stats. We’ll get to the running backs, but first let’s give the offensive line its props. They have been the dominant unit in this playoff run, I believe.
— Malakoff had three running backs with runs of 20-plus yards and a combined 11 runs of more than 10 yards. R.J. Carr in his first game since the second week of the season had 179 yards rushing and two touchdowns, Keevie Rose had 126 yards and two touchdowns, and Darion Peace had 92 yards and a touchdown.
— Did you see both R.J. Carr and Darion Peace have runs where they hurdled over Rabbit defenders? Also, Carr ran out of his shoe on his 39-yard run in the first quarter.
— Malakoff’s scoring plays included:
Darion Peace 8-yard run, 8:13 1Q
Keevie Rose 6-yard run, 6:50 1Q
R.J. Carr 44-yard run, 11:50 2Q
Keevie Rose 15-yard run, 8:19 2Q
Hector Romero 20-yard field goal, :09 2Q
R.J. Carr 7-yard run, 5:53 3Q
— The Malakoff defense was outstanding in the first half, holding Atlanta to just over 100 yards of offense and 6 points. And although the Rabbits were able to break off a couple of big plays in the second half, the Tigers stopped Atlanta on a big fourth down late in the game when D.K. Rose and Colby Rush tacked the Rabbit quarterback short of the sticks.
— The Tigers couldn’t have asked for a better start to the game. Malakoff’s Caleb Adams blocked Atlanta’s first punt attempt, setting up the Tigers first touchdown. Then on the next possession, Nathan Jones intercepted the Rabbits to set up Malakoff’s second score. That 14-0 lead came about 5 minutes into the game and buoyed the Tigers throughout.
— I have to give a shout out to Malakoff senior lineman Kyler Dalrymple. You don’t often notice linemen unless they do something wrong, but I saw Kyler show exactly the character you want from a football player on two separate plays Saturday. Early in the game, he showed sportsmanship when he stopped to help an Atlanta player fix his jersey. Later in the game, during the Rabbits’ last gasp, Kyler broke through the line and hit the Atlanta quarterback just as he was throwing the ball, causing it to flutter high in the air. Malakoff wasn’t able to come down with the interception, but it was still an excellent play by Kyler. Sportsmanship, aggressiveness and toughness; yeah, that will win you a lot of ball games and make you proud at the end.
— I’ve written before about the impact of Malakoff’s fans, so let’s let Coach Driskell say it this time. “The fans were awesome,” Driskell said. “They were loud and we had a ton of people here. The town is rallying behind these kids and that’s kind of what needs to happen right here.”
— Next up for Malakoff is Brock. The game is tentatively set for 4 p.m. Friday at The Star in Frisco.
I wanted to tell you about taking a load of beat up furniture to Gloria McDonald’s house, but I can’t because we never got there.
I’m talking about the remains of a once-elegant, over-stuffed three-piece living room suite, now losing that stuffing, with its fabric all musty and torn, and its springs exposed. The Andings uncovered it beneath the debris at the old Kilman hospital and put it outside to be hauled away. However, the frames were sturdy, and there was such beautiful carving on its base and arms we posted pictures on Facebook.
MINEOLA — The Malakoff Tigers ran through No. 7 Jefferson, 31-21, in area round playoff action Friday afternoon.
The Tigers controlled the clock with a power running game that kept Jefferson’s offense on the sidelines.
The win improves Malakoff’s record to 9-2. Next up for the Tigers is Gladewater with the time and location to be determined.
Here are my 10 observations from the day after Thanksgiving.
— Malakoff’s game plan was obvious to everyone in the stadium. The Tigers came in wanting to be physical, run between the tackles and impose their will on the Bulldogs and that is exactly what they did. It was a “four yards and a cloud of dust” stategy for which Jefferson had no answer.
— Keevie Rose was the focal point of Malakoff’s attack and the junior should have no trouble sleeping tonight. He carried 38 times for 127 yards and a touchdown, according to my unofficial stats. Rose ran down hill all game long, punishing the Bulldogs.
— Speaking of punishment, can we get a hand for the big guys up front. The Malakoff offensive line dominated this game. Kyler Dalrymple, Jamicah Gregg, Lincoln Rogers, Eric Littleton and Brenden McClintock along with tight ends Parker Busch and Colby Rush manhandled the Bulldogs.
— While Malakoff didn’t pass as much as normal, quarterback Darion Peace was able to throw for some key completions. He had 177 yards and a touchdown on nine completions.
— Andreas Garrett caught four of those passes for 127 yards, including a wide receiver screen he took 79 yards to the house.
— Are you wondering just how completely Malakoff controlled the ball and the clock? Well, not counting plays wiped out by penaties, kickoffs or extra points, Malakoff ran 67 plays to Jefferson’s 31. And even that isn’t a fair representation because 8 of Jefferson’s snaps came on its final drive. Jefferson had just five offensive plays in the first half.
— Malakoff had touchdown drives of 14 plays, 15 plays, and 16 plays.
— We haven’t said much about the Tiger defense and part of that is because it wasn’t on the field very much. But if you were going to pick a turning-point play of the game, you’d probably look at the defense stopping Jefferson on 4th down late in the third quarter. With Malakoff nursing a 3-point lead, Jefferson drove down to the Malakoff 19 where it faced a 4th and 2. The Tiger defense bowed up and dropped Jefferson’s ball carrier for a loss of one. Three plays later, Garrett took off on his 79-yard scoring romp and Jefferson never threatened again.
— Jefferson likes its trick plays. It ran a reverse flea flicker and a throw back to the quarterback in the same series.
— While playoff games are played on neutral fields, it sure felt like a Malakoff home game. Tiger fans travel well and the crowd was electric Friday afternoon and that energy was definitely felt on the sidelines.
By Loretta Humble/Around the Town
